


Good and Evil are in the eyes of the beholder

by MephK



Category: Bleach
Genre: Action/Adventure, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-18
Updated: 2015-02-21
Packaged: 2018-03-13 14:50:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,854
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3385781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MephK/pseuds/MephK
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>That fateful day, Ichigo dies alongside his mother, and the future of many people is irreversibly altered, for the better or the worse. (Hollow!Ichigo)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue : Death (the Human)

**Prologue**

_**Death (the Human)** _

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Pain. White hot blinding pain, coursing through his veins and burning his body from within. It had all happened so fast. One second he was walking with his mommy on the roadside, the next she was lying still in a pool of blood. And that thing, something so horrible it shouldn't exist, was crushing him on the floor, its drooling mouth so close from his face he could feel its breath on his skin. He was so terrified he couldn't utter a single sound.

The last things he saw were its huge teeth closing in on him. Darkness engulfed him.

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**AN:**

**This is something I started last year, and will continue if I have the time. I have the bad habit of working on several things at the same time so everything ends up progressing very slowly. ^^'**

**As you might have guessed, in this story Ichigo dies with his mother, so instead of taking the 'shinigami' route, he'll take the 'hollow' route throughout the story.**

**I will try to respect the canon's main lines, but there will obviously be changes.**

**Reviews are welcome, I'm open to any suggestion you may have for the development of the story. :)**

**PS: I'm looking for someone who'd be interested in co-writing/beta-ing this story. ** **Don't hesitate to tell me if you'r interested or if you have any ideas. ^^**


	2. Chapter One : Rebirth (the Hollow)

**Chapter One**

_**Rebirth (the Hollow)** _

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He woke up at the sound of sirens, red and blue lights flashing in his eyes. He saw people hurrying all around him, police cars, firemen trucks and ambulances all around him. Yet they all passed him without giving him a single glance. In the sea of people he caught a glimpse of a familiar face and ran toward it.

"Daddy! Daddy, I want to go home!"

And yet no matter how much the boy tugged on his father's clothes, he didn't answer, his eyes locked on something else. The boy turned and what he saw left him shell shocked. Here, on the ground not far away, surrounded by doctors and police officers, lay his mother. So still and cold and so  _foreign_. Blood pooled up on the ground around her frame, slowly drying up on her clothes. So surreal. It couldn't be true. It was all a nightmare. He would soon wake up and his mother would hug him, and his father would make that silly smile, and his baby sisters would laugh and they'd be a happy family forever. Yet no matter how much he wished it, no matter how many times he would close his eyes and open them again, no matter how hard he pinched himself, the scene around him didn't change.

He ran toward his mother, ignoring all the others around them, and started shaking her.

"Wake up! Mommy, please, wake up! I'll be a good boy, I'll protect you, I'll be strong, so please, wake up!"

But no matter how much he cried and begged and shouted she didn't move. He barely heard a police officer shout at his left. "Inspector! We found the boy!"

He saw then several men run toward the direction the officer pointed and, still in a shocked daze, followed them. And then he saw it. Here, broken and twisted, and with blood everywhere, lay a boy's body. His head was missing, as if hacked away by something sharp, or maybe even  _eaten_  by something, and the sight made him nauseous. The worst fact was that the boy's clothes were the same as his. It sent a chill down his spine.

His thoughts were interrupted by the same officer as before, holding papers in his hands. "The woman was known as Kurosaki Masaki. Her husband is here if you want to interrogate him, inspector. The boy must be their young son,  _Ichigo_. From what we gathered, they had gone out to buy groceries-" The man continued on but he wasn't paying attention anymore.

It couldn't be! He was here. It couldn't be him! They must have made an error! He wasn't  _dead_. He was still here, thinking, breathing, talking. He tried to shake the man, tell him he was still alive, but the man kept on ignoring him. He ran back to his father, tried to shake him again, to attract his attention in any way possible, but nothing was working.

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He spent the next few days trying to attract his family's attention, in vain. He even had to watch his own burial. It had been so weird, seeing them talk about him, seeing his father about to cry as the lowered the coffin down into the ground, even though he was here, right next to him.

What unsettled him most was, if he was dead, why was he still here and not in heaven of hell or wherever the dead went to? Maybe he was stuck here because of the chain? He had noticed it the first night after the  _accident_ , when he had been watching his family sleep, cuddled together in search of some warmth and comfort. It was sticking out from his chest but no matter of much he pulled, it wouldn't give in. Not that he wanted to leave his family either way. Now he could watch over them. He had to. Maybe it was his chance to redeem himself for not being able to protect his mother?

And so it started. The dead boy would watch over his father working at the clinic and he would watch over his sisters at home or later in school. He started experimenting with what he could do or not and found out that even though most people couldn't see him, some could sense his presence to a certain degree. He also noticed that as time passed by, the chain seemed to eat itself away and would shorten.

One evening, as he was sitting on the windowsill of his father's study at the clinic, he saw a strange creature in the street. It was completely black except for a strange white mask on its face, with colored lines on it and its body looked like it was trying to copy the form of a human but without much success. Surprisingly, the few people walking outside at this late hour didn't seem to give it much attention. It brought back an ominous feeling to Ichigo, but he couldn't seem to remember why.

Suddenly, the creature leaped and landed heavily on the other side of the road, crushing a few people under its feet and sending off several car alarms. Weirdly, this seemed to attract some attention but instead of running away from the creature, the people called the cops and went to help the wounded, completely ignoring it. Ichigo shouted at them to stay away but they didn't listen and soon several new bodies joined the first ones. Then he saw the creature wreck their bodies and pull out their souls. Or at least that's what he thought it was. They had chains on their chest just like him. It then ate them and leaped away, jumping over the building and disappearing into the night. When the police cars arrived, they concluded that it had been the work of some mad murderer on the run. As if they couldn't see the huge teeth marks on the dead bodies.

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The next time the boy met one of these creatures, about the same thing happened. He deduced that, much like him, normal people couldn't see them. He also noticed that even if their mask and form were different, they all had some sort of hole in their body. And they ate souls. Ichigo couldn't defend himself so he tried not to attract their attention.

That worked for some time but one night, one of them came to their home. It started banging the door open. His father woke up and started going downstairs. Ichigo desperately tried to stop him, he shouted at him to run away with his sisters but his father still couldn't see nor feel him. He couldn't let him die. He couldn't let what was left of his family be killed just like his mother!

Ichigo jumped outside and ran toward the monster. If it had to eat a soul, he would rather it be his than that of his father or sisters! It saw him and started to attack him. Thanks to his little size compared to that of the monster, Ichigo managed to dodge the first hits but the huge creature soon landed a blow that had him flying across the street and landing painfully into a wall. He cried out in pain as it walked toward him, about to eat his soul. It tackled him to the ground and lowered its face toward his, mirroring what happened such a long time ago. He would die. Again.

"Kukuku... Such little faith... Do you want to disappear so badly?"

At first Ichigo thought that the one who had talked was the monster, but surely a beast like that couldn't have a  _child_ 's voice? And it seemed so close to him, as if talking directly into his mind.

"Do you really think that you'll save them by dying? What a fool you are."

Who? Who could be here? He looked frantically around but he could see only himself and the monster. No one else was here. He must be hallucinating...

"You really are dense, aren't you? How do you think you survived the first time around? They  _eat_  souls, remember? It ate your mother's soul and it would have eaten yours too if not for me. Be thankful."

Wha-? Sure, the question had crossed his mind but... There had been no one else that time either. He'd been alone in front of the beast.

"No. You weren't. You've never been alone, Ichigo. I've always been with you, our souls intertwined from the very moment you were conceived. I've always protected you, Ichigo."

The boy stood very still, crouched against the wall and the monster, trying to process what he had just heard. Protected? Then why hadn't that person saved his mother? Why had he left him die? Even the monster seemed to hesitate, so close from ending his existence yet still not doing it.

"I can make you stronger, Ichigo. I can even make you the strongest. And I can give you the power to protect your family and to destroy all those that would dare to try and attack them. But I can only take over if you relinquish your control, as you did last time when you died. All you have to do is stop denying me. Get rid of that chain. Give up on what makes you human and become something more. We can be so much more, Ichigo."

Could he really... Stop being so powerless? Would he finally be able to protect those he loved? Just by... Changing? Evolving?

"Become yourself, Ichigo. Stop denying me. Give up on the pretenses, on the lies and on the rules that bind you. Be finally free, Ichigo. Free of your humanity. Free of your human heart..."

He let himself be soothed by the other's words, slowly relaxing, giving in, he felt strangely at peace. Then a sudden jolt of pain coursed trough his chest, he almost cried out in pain, eyes open wide looking straight into those of the monster, mirroring them even. Pain. Pain. So much pain. His hands frantically clutched his chest, scratching, clawing at it, trying to take away the pain. He was suffocating. His body hunched forward, choking, couching up what seemed like a huge ball stuck in his throat. Then the dam broke and he let out a long howl that had nothing human about it.

The monster took a few step back as its prey contorted and writhed in pain on the floor, slowly turning into something far more dangerous, white matter flowing from his mouth to cover his face as huge hole opened in his chest. His shape gradually changed, becoming darker and darker every second that passed, and crimson black energy engulfed him.

When the energy receded, there was no trace of the child left on the street. All that could be seen were two monsters facing each other. A gruesome fight ensued, ending with the death of the bigger one at the hands of the much smaller yet deadlier new one, who then ate its fallen enemy before disappearing into the night without looking back.

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**AN:**

**Reviews are welcome. :)**

**PS: I'm looking for someone interested in co-writing/beta-ing that story. Tell me if you're interested. ^^**

 


	3. Chapter 2 : Predator (the Twin)

Chapter Two

Predator (the Twin)

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The first few days were a blur for the newly born hollow, he had to get used to this new body who was so different from his previous one. But he didn't miss his frail human body one bit. He was taller, stronger, faster. His claws could tear apart flesh and bone alike, his arms were now prolonged by sleek and deadly scythes and his long tail helped him catch his preys. He tried his hand at a few human and found out that most of the time their souls were bland and tasteless, hardly enough to satisfy his hunger. On the contrary the souls of other hollows like the first one he defeated were all much more nourishing, tasty and were filled to the brim with spiritual power.

Soon the other hollows heard rumors of a cannibal fellowrunning around Karakura town and killing all those who crossed his way.

 

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His inner voice had taught him all about what he was: a _H_ _ollow_ , a deadly creature that evolved by eating the souls of others. He had taught him how to survive, how to fight, how to hunt and how to kill. He had felt the thrill of the predator, feeding on his prey's fear and despair, ready to attack and end its existence.

He felt himself becoming stronger and stronger as he defeated more hollows and fed upon their corpses, his black red signature energy flaring around him when he fought. He occasionally also fed on humans who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time but their souls didn't carry as much energy and they were often as tasteless as their existence, with sometimes a few who even tasted bad because of their sins. The good ones really were rare. What a shame.

He was sitting as usual on the clinic's rooftop when he felt a strange surge of energy in the distance. It lacked the special, how to say it... Texture? Signature?, Hollows usually put into their spiritual energy and allowed them to distinguish each other easily. This one was more bland, like that of a human, yet much stronger than one would usually be.Intrigued, he headed toward its source to see what it was that emitted such a strong energy.

 

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What he found surprised him. A human in a black kimono was killing hollows with some sort of katana. He climbed on a roof and let his energy flow everywhere to dull his prey's senses. Humans who could see hollows were rare but he had seen some of them try to fight back. Yet none had actually managed to _kill_ one of his brethren. In fact, none had managed to harm noticeably any hollow, so to see one succeed so easily greatly puzzled him.

“ _Shinigami_. Be careful.”

He inwardly jumped at the sound of his inner voice. Why did he always have to be so cryptic?

“I don't think that is what you should be worrying about right now.”

Then what was it he should worry about? The human? The shini...what?

“Shinigami. They're dead human souls living in their own world, the Soul Society. Part of an army who raids this world to rid it of hollows like us. A good bunch of self-righteous bastards. They're far more powerful than average human souls and their weapons have special powers.”

Powers? What kind of powers? Would that make him stronger?

“You'll see when you fight them. This one looks weak enough. Kill him and eat his soul.”

He hummed appreciatively at that. He wanted it. The power. The strength. He jumped down and attacked the shinigami, easily cornering him between two high buildings. The human retaliated but he wasn't much more dangerous than some of the bigger hollows he had fed upon. His prey was scared, weak. He was about to end it when the shinigami shouted some weird words, clutching his katana as if it could protect him.

“The katana is called a _zanpakuto_. He just released its shikai, its special power.” told him his inner voice.

Surprised, he took a few steps back and he saw the shinigami's zanpakuto emit energy and start changing shape. Within a few moments the sword had disappeared and in its place stood some kind of maul. The shinigami launched himself at him, his speed somewhat increased, and swung the maul in his direction. He barely avoided it but used the shinigami's momentum to make him impale himself on one of his scythes. The shinigami dropped dead.Was that all? He expected something more from someone supposed to live by killing hollows.

“This one was fairly weak. But kill the weak and stronger ones will come. Then we will have some real fun.”

 

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More shinigamis had indeed come, but he had killed them all. Some had tried to put up some kind of resistance but it had proven each time to be utterly useless against his own growing power. Each time he consumed a shinigami, his spiritual energy increased and he picked up the now masterless zanpakuto to bring it back to his lair.

And it truly was a nice sight, all these weaponsgleaming under the moonlight. He found himself understanding the dragons of the fairy tales, living surrounded by their trophies and mountains of treasure. Not that he possessed the latter, but he did have a fair amount of the former. The dozen of zanpakutos plantedon the Kurosaki Clinic's rooftop were proof enough of that. Some had even retained their shikai form after he had eaten their former possessor's soul. Yet none of them would listen to him. Not that he cared one bit either way. Trophies were meant for show, not for use.

The shinigami often showed up at night and the other hollows were too wary of his strength to dare enter his territory anymore, so he spent most of his days either watching the Kurosaki family or dozing off on the clinic's rooftop. It was one such day when he first found himself in his _mindscape_ , as he would later call it. He was lazing out in the sun, his mind free of any thought, when he suddenly found himself surrounded by the tallest skycrapers he had ever seen, thousands of steel buildings reaching the cloudy night sky and towering over a black ocean stretching as far as he could see. Their windows seemed to multiply the moon's light, reflecting it over and over on all the buildings' facades.

“Took you quite some time. Then again hollows rarely have a mind clear enough to access this place. Or even a reason to do so.”

The voice came from just behind him and he turned around. In front of him was standing a teen with ashen white hair and skin, his eyes yellow on black and a red striped mask on his face. He wore a long black lined white jacket with short sleeves and white trousers and he had two big knife-like swords on his sides. What sold him as a hollow were the claws on his hands and feet, as well as the black hole in the middle of his chest that stood out, clashing with his white skin.

“You... You're the one who was speaking in my mind, no?” he asked hesitantly.

“Of course I am. Who else could be strolling around in your mind, Ichigo?” answered his interlocutor.

“So we're in my mind? But why do you look like this?”

“Yes. And obviously, I am a part of you, so I look roughly the same as you do.”

“But I don't look like this. I am a hollow now, not a human anymore.”

“But your soul still kept a part of its humanity, hence me looking like this here. And you too.” pointed the white haired boy.

Ichigo looked at himself and found that it was true. He looked like his double, except for the colors. His hair was back to its original orange color and his clothes were black instead of white.

“You still haven't completely given up on your humanity, Ichigo, despite having become a hollow. You still unconsciously reject in me the darkest part of your mind. That's why we're still two separate beings here. And that's also one of the reasons why we look so much alike. You could say that I'm your evil twin: you are the Dr Jekyll and I am Mr Hyde.”

Ichigo was about to deny it somehow but the other cut him short.

“That was to be expected, though. You aren't ready. Yet. When the time will come for you to finally accept and understand all that you are, we will become one, and my power will be yours. For now, I will stay here but remember that: you are in control because your will is stronger. If your determination falters, if your weakness overtakes you, even for one split second, I will take control of our body and you will be the one stuck here. Got it?”

“Y-yeah...” muttered the redhead, still trying to process what he had just heard. He then opened his mouth again as if to add something but finally decided against it and closed it again without saying anything. The albino made an annoyed noise at that.

“What?” Ichigo looked up at the other, surprised by the sharp tone he had used.

“I... What is your name?” finally managed to ask the redhead.

“Why would it matter? It's not as if I could go away or talk to anyone else.” came the annoyed reply.

“But... It would still be easier for me to be able to call you by a name when we converse.” said Ichigo.

“Fine. Just choose one, then.” answered the white haired teen flatly.

Ichigo thought about it for several minutes and when the other was about to lose patience and lash out he finally answered.

“Shirosaki.”

“What?”

“My name is 'Kurosaki' and 'kuro' means 'black'. But you are my opposite, and furthermore you are all white so I thought that 'Shirosaki' would suit you since 'shiro' means 'white'.”explained the redhead.

“So be it, then.”

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**AN:**

**Reviews are welcome, be it on the way I write or the choices I made in the story. (like keeping the skyscrapers for Ichigo's mindscape)**

**I'm open to any suggestion you may have for the development of the story. :)**

**I'm still looking for a beta-writer. :) Tell me if you're interested.**

 

 


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